The Journey of Alvar Nuñez Cabeza De Vaca - Part 1



On the 27th day of the month of June, 1527, the Governor Panfilo de 
Narvaez departed from the port of San Lucar de Barrameda, with authority 
and orders from Your Majesty to conquer and govern the provinces that 
extend from the river of the Palms to the Cape of the Florida, these 
provinces being on the main land. The fleet he took along consisted of 
five vessels, in which went about 600 men. The officials he had with him 
(since they must be mentioned) were those here named: Cabeza de Vaca, 
treasurer and alguacil mayor; Alonso Enriquez, purser; Alonso de Solis, 
factor of Your Majesty and inspector. A friar of the order of Saint 
Francis, called Fray Juan [Suarez], went as commissary, with four other 
monks of the order. We arrived at the Island of Santo Domingo, where we 
remained nearly forty-five days, supplying ourselves with necessary 
things, especially horses. Here more than 140 men of our army forsook us, 
who wished to remain, on account of the proposals and promises made them 
by the people of the country. From there we started and arrived at 
Santiago (a port in the Island of Cuba) where, in the few days that we 
remained the Governor supplied himself again with people, arms and horses. 
It happened there that a gentleman called Vasco Porcallo, a resident of la 
Trinidad (which is on the same island), offered to give the Governor 
certain stores he had at a distance of 100 leagues from the said harbor of 
Santiago.

The Governor, with the whole fleet, sailed for that place, but midways, at 
a port named Cape Santa Cruz, he thought best to stop and send a single 
vessel to load and bring these stores. Therefore he ordered a certain 
Captain Pantoja to go thither with his craft and directed me to accompany 
him for the sake of control, while he remained with four ships, having 
purchased one on the Island of Santo Domingo. Arrived at the port of 
Trinidad with these two vessels, Captain Pantoja went with Vasco Porcallo 
to the town (which is one league from there) in order to take possession 
of the supplies. I remained on board with the pilots, who told us that we 
should leave as soon as possible, since the harbor was very unsafe and 
many vessels had been lost in it. Now, since what happened to us there was 
very remarkable, it appeared to me not unsuitable, for the aims and ends 
of this, my Narrative, to tell it here.

The next morning the weather looked ominous. It began to rain, and the sea 
toughened so that, although I allowed the men to land, when they saw the 
weather and that the town was one league away, many came back to the ship 
so as not to be[in the wet and cold. At the same time there came a canoe 
from the town conveying a letter from a person residing there, begging me 
to come, and they would give me the stores and whatever else might be 
necessary. But I excused myself, stating that I could not leave the ships.

At noon the canoe came again with another letter, repeating the request 
with much insistency, and there was also a horse for me to go on. I gave 
the same reply as the first time, saying that I could not leave the 
vessels. But the pilots and the people begged me so much to leave and 
hasten the transportation of the stores to the ships, in order to be able 
to sail soon, from a place where they were in great fear the ships would 
be lost in case they had to remain long. So I determined upon going, 
although before I went I left the pilots well instructed and with orders 
in case the south wind (which often wrecked the shipping) should rise, and 
they found themselves in great danger, to run the vessels ashore, when men 
and horses might be saved. So I left, wishing for some of them to 
accompany me, but they refused, alleging the hard rain, the cold and that 
the town was far away.

On the next day, which was Sunday, they promised to come, God helping, to 
hear mass. One hour after my departure the sea became very rough and the 
north wind blew so fiercely that neither did the boats dare to land, nor 
could they beach the vessels, since the wind was blowing from the shore. 
They spent that day and Sunday greatly distressed by two contrary storms 
and much rain, until nightfall. Then the rain and storm increased in 
violence at the village, as well as on the sea, and all the houses and the 
churches fell down, and we had to go about, seven or eight men locking 
Arms at a time, to prevent the wind from carrying us off, and under the 
trees it was not less dangerous than among the houses, for as they also 
were blown down we were in danger of being killed beneath them. In this 
tempest and peril we wandered about all night, without finding any part or 
place where we might feel safe for half an hour. 

In this plight we heard, all night long and especially after midnight, a 
great uproar, the sound of many voices, the tinkling of little bells, also 
flutes and tambourines and other instruments, the most of which noise 
lasted until morning, when the storm ceased. Never has such a fearful 
thing been witnessed in those parts. I took testimony concerning it, and 
sent it, certified, to Your Majesty. On Monday morning we went down to the 
harbor, but did not find the vessels. We saw the buoys in the water, and 
from this knew that the ships were lost. So we followed the shore, looking 
for wreckage, and not finding any turned into the forest. Walking through 
it we saw, a fourth of a league from water, the little boat of one of the 
vessels on the top of trees, and ten leagues further, on the coast, were 
two men of my crew and certain covers of boxes. The bodies were so 
disfigured by striking against the rocks as to be unrecognizable. There 
were also found a cape and a tattered, nothing else. Sixty people and 
twenty horses perished on the ships. Those who went on land the day we 
arrived, some thirty men, were all who survived of the crews of both 
vessels.

We remained thus for several days in great need and distress, for the food 
and stores at the village had been ruined also, as well as some cattle. 
The country was pitiable to look at. The trees had fallen and the woods 
were blighted, and there was neither foliage nor grass. In this condition 
we were until the 5th day of the month of November, when the Governor, 
with his four vessels, arrived. They also had weathered a great storm and 
had escaped by betaking themselves to a safe place in time. The people on 
board of the ships and those he found were so terrified by what had 
happened that they were afraid to set to sea again in winter and begged 
the Governor to remain there for that season, and he, seeing their good 
will and that of the inhabitants, wintered at that place. He put into my 
charge the vessels and their crews, and I was to go with them to the port 
of Xagua, twelve leagues distant, where I remained until the 20th day of 
February.

At that time the Governor came with a brig he had bought at Trinidad, and 
with him a pilot called Miruelo. That man he had taken because he said he 
knew the way and had been on the river of the Palms and was a very good 
pilot for the whole northern coast. The Governor left, on the coast of 
Habana, another vessel that he had bought there, on which there remained, 
as captain, Alvaro de Cerda, with forty people and twelve horsemen. Two 
days after the Governor arrived he went aboard. The people he took along 
were 400 men and eighty horses, on four vessels and one brigantine. The 
pilot we had taken ran the vessels aground on the sands called "of 
Canarreo," so that the next day we were stranded and remained stranded for 
fifteen days, the keels often touching bottom. Then a storm from the south 
drove so much water on the shoals that we could get off, though not 
without much danger. 

Departing from there and arrived at Guaniguanico, another tempest came up 
in which we nearly perished. At Cape Corrientes we had another, which 
lasted three days. Afterward we doubled the Cape of Sant Anton and sailed 
with contrary winds as far as twelve leagues off Habana, and when, on the 
following day, we attempted to enter, a southerly storm drove us away, so 
that we crossed to the coast of Florida, sighting land on Tuesday, the 
12th day of the month of April. We coasted the way of Florida, and on Holy 
Thursday cast anchor at the mouth of a bay, at the head of which we saw 
certain houses and habitations of Indians.

On that same day the clerk, Alonso Enriquez, left and went to an island in 
the bay and called the Indians, who came and were with him a good while, 
and by way of exchange they gave him fish and some venison. The day 
following (which was Good Friday) the Governor disembarked, with as many 
men as his little boats would hold, and as we arrived at the huts or 
houses of the Indians we had seen, we found them abandoned and deserted, 
the people having left that same night in their canoes. One of those 
houses was so large that it could hold more than 300 people. The others 
were smaller, and we found a golden rattle among the nets. The next day 
the Governor hoisted flags in behalf of Your Majesty and took possession 
of the country in Your Royal name, exhibited his credentials, and was 
acknowledged as Governor according to Your Majesty's commands. We likewise 
presented our titles to him, and he complied as they required. He then 
ordered the remainder of the men to disembark, also the forty-two horses 
left (the others having perished on account of the great storms and the 
long time they had been on sea), and these few that remained were so thin 
and weak that they could be of little use for the time. The next day the 
Indians of that village came, and, although they spoke to us, as we had no 
interpreters we did not understand them; but they made many gestures and 
threats, and it seemed as if they beckoned to us to leave the country. 
Afterward, without offering any molestation, they went away.

After another day the Governor resolved to penetrate inland to explore the 
country and see what it contained. We went with him&emdash;the commissary, 
the inspector and myself, with forty men, among them six horsemen, who 
seemed likely to be of but little use. We took the direction of the north, 
and at the hour of vespers reached a very large bay, which appeared to 
sweep far inland. After remaining there that night and the next day, we 
returned to the place where the vessels and the men were. The Governor 
ordered the brigantine to coast towards Florida in search of the port 
which Miruelo, the pilot, had said he knew, but he had missed it and did 
not know where we were, nor where the port was. So word was sent to the 
brigantine, in case it were not found to cross over to Habana in quest of 
the vessel of Alvaro de la Cerda, and, after taking in some supplies, to 
come after us again.

After the brigantine left we again penetrated inland, the same persons as 
before, with some more men. We followed the shore of the bay, and, after a 
march of four leagues, captured four Indians, to whom we showed maize in 
order to find out if they knew it, for until then we had seen no trace of 
it. They told us that they would take us to a place where there was maize 
and they led us to their village, at the end of the bay nearby, and there 
they showed us some that was not yet fit to be gathered. There we found 
many boxes for merchandise from Castilla. In every one of them was a 
corpse covered with painted deer hides. The commissary thought this to be 
some idolatrous practice, so he burnt the boxes with the corpses. We also 
found pieces of linen and cloth, and feather head dresses that seemed to 
be from New Spain, and samples of gold.

We inquired of the Indians (by signs) whence they had obtained these 
things and they gave us to understand that, very far from there, was a 
province called Apalachen in which there was much gold. They also 
signified to us that in that province we would find everything we held in 
esteem. They said that in Apalachen there was plenty.

So, taking them as guides, we started, and after walking ten or twelve 
leagues, came to another village of fifteen houses, where there was a 
large cultivated patch of corn nearly ready for harvest, and also some 
that was already ripe. After staying there two days, we returned to the 
place where we had left the purser, the men and the vessels, and told the 
purser and pilots what we saw and the news the Indians had given us.

The next day, which was the 1st of May, the Governor took aside the 
commissary, the purser, the inspector, myself, a sailor called Bartolomé 
Fernandez and a notary by the name of Jeronimo de Albaniz, and told us 
that he had in mind to penetrate inland, while the vessels should follow 
the coast as far as the harbor; since the pilots said and believed that, 
if they went in the direction of the Palms they would reach it soon. On 
this he asked us to give our opinions.

I replied that it seemed to me in no manner advisable to forsake the ships 
until they were in a safe port, held and occupied by us. I told him to 
consider that the pilots were at a loss, disagreeing among themselves, 
undecided as to what course to pursue. Moreover, the horses would not be 
with us in case we needed them, and, furthermore, we had no interpreter to 
make ourselves understood by the natives; hence we could have no parley 
with them. Neither did we know what to expect from the land we were 
entering, having no knowledge of what it was, what it might contain and by 
what kind of people it was inhabited, nor in what part of it we were; 
finally, that we had not the supplies required for penetrating into an 
unknown country, for of the stores left in the ships not more than one 
pound of biscuit and one of bacon could be given as rations to each man 
for the journey, so that, in my opinion, we should re-embark and sail in 
quest of a land and harbor better adapted to settlement, since the country 
which we had seen was the most deserted and the poorest ever found in 
those parts.

The commissary was of the contrary saying, that we should not embark, but 
follow the coast in search of a harbor, as the pilots asserted that the 
way to Panuco was not more than ten or fifteen leagues distant and that by 
following along the coast it was impossible to miss it, since the coast 
bent inland for twelve leagues. The first ones who came there should wait 
for the others. As to embarking, he said it would be to tempt God, after 
all the vicissitudes of storms, losses of men and vessels and hardships we 
had suffered since leaving Spain, and until we came to that place. So his 
advice would be to move along the coast as far as the harbor, while the 
vessels with the other men would follow to the same port.

To all the others this seemed to be the best, except to the notary, who 
said that before leaving the ships they should be put into a harbor well 
known, safe and in a settled country, after which we might go inland and 
do as we liked.

The Governor clung to his own idea and to the suggestions of the others.

Seeing his determination, I required him, on the part of Your Majesty, not 
to forsake the vessels until they were in a secure port, and I asked the 
notary present to testify to what I said. The Governor replied that he 
approved the opinion of the other officials and of the commissary; that I 
had no authority for making such demands, and he asked the notary to give 
him a certified statement as to how, there not being in the country the 
means for supporting a settlement, nor any harbor for the ships, he broke 
up the village he had founded, and went in search of the port and of a 
better land. So he forthwith ordered the people who were to go with him to 
get ready, providing themselves with what was necessary for the journey. 
After this he turned to me, and told me in the presence of all who were 
there that, since I so much opposed the expedition into the interior and 
was afraid of it, I should take charge of the vessels and men remaining, 
and, in case I reached the port before him, I should settle there. This I 
declined.

After the meeting was over he, on that same evening, saying that it seemed 
to him as if he could not trust anybody, sent me word that he begged me to 
take charge of that part of the expedition, and as, in spite of his 
insistency, I declined, he asked for the reasons of my refusal, I then 
told him that I refused to accept, because I felt sure he would never see 
the ships again, or be seen by their crews any more; that, seeing how 
utterly unprepared he was for moving inland, I preferred to share the risk 
with him and his people, and suffer what they would have to suffer, rather 
than take charge of the vessels and thus give occasion for saying that I 
opposed the journey and remained out of fear, which would place my honor 
in jeopardy. So that I would much rather expose of my life than, under 
these circumstances, my good name.

Seeing that he could not change my determination, he had others approach 
me about it with entreaties. But I gave the same answer to them as to him, 
and he finally provided for his lieutenant to take command of the vessels, 
an alcalde named Caravallo. 

On Saturday, the 1st of May, the day on which all this had happened, he 
ordered that they should give to each one of those who had to go with him, 
two pounds of ship-biscuit and one-half pound of bacon, and thus we set 
out upon our journey inland. The number of people we took along was three 
hundred, among them the commissary, Father Juan Xuarez, another friar 
called Father Juan de Palos and three priests, the officers, and forty 
horsemen. We marched for fifteen days, living on the supplies we had taken 
with us, without finding anything else to eat but palmettos like those of 
Andalusia. In all this time we did not meet a soul, nor did we see a house 
or village, and finally reached a river, which we crossed with much 
trouble, by swimming and on rafts. It took us a day to ford the river on 
account of the swiftness of its current. When we got across, there came 
towards us some two hundred Indians, more or less; the Governor went to 
meet them, and after he talked to them by signs they acted in such a 
manner that we were obliged to set upon them and seize five or six, who 
took us to their houses, about half a league from there, where we found a 
large quantity of corn ready for harvest. We gave infinite thanks to our 
Lord for having helped us in such great need, for, as we were not used to 
such exposures, we felt greatly exhausted, and were much weakened by 
hunger.

On the third day that we were at this place the purser, the inspector, the 
commissary and myself jointly begged the Governor to send out in search of 
a harbor, as the Indians told us the sea was not very far away. He forbade 
us to speak of it, saying it was at a great distance, and I being the one 
who most insisted, he bade me to go on a journey of discovery and search 
of a port, and said I should go on foot with forty people. So the next day 
I started with the Captain Alonso del Castillo and forty men of his 
company. At noon we reached sandy patches that seemed to extend far 
inland. For about one and a half leagues we walked, with the water up to 
the knee, and stepping on shells that cut our feet badly. All this gave us 
much trouble, until we reached the river which we had crossed first, and 
which emptied through the same inlet, and then, as we were too ill-
provided for crossing it, we turned back to camp and told the Governor 
what we had found and how it was necessary to ford the river again at our 
first crossing in order to explore the inlet thoroughly and find out if 
there was a harbor.

The next day he sent a captain called Valenzuela with sixty footmen and 
six horsemen to cross the river and follow its course to the sea in search 
of a port. After two days he came back, reporting that he had discovered 
the inlet, which was a shallow bay, with water to the knees, but it had 
there no harbor. He saw five or six canoes crossing from one side to the 
other, with Indians who wore many feather bushes.

Hearing this, we left the next day, always in quest of the province called 
Apalachen by the Indians, taking as guides those whom we had captured, and 
marched until the 17th of June without finding an Indian who would dare to 
wait for us. Finally there came to us a chief, whom an Indian carried on 
his shoulders. He wore a painted deerskin, and many people followed him, 
and he was preceded by many players on flutes made of reeds. He came the 
place where the Governor was and stayed an hour. We gave him to understand 
by signs that our aim was to reach Apalachen, but from his gestures it 
seemed to us that he was an enemy of the Apalachen people and that he 
would go and help us against them. We gave him beads and little bells and 
other trinkets, while he presented the Governor with the hide he wore. 
Then he turned back and we followed him.

That night we reached a broad and deep river, the current of which was 
very strong and as we did not dare to cross it, we built a canoe out of 
rafts and were a whole day in getting across. If the Indians had wished to 
oppose us, they could have easily impeded our passage, for even with their 
help we had much trouble. One horseman, whose name was Juan Velazquez, a 
native of Cuellar, not willing to wait, rode into the stream, and the 
strong current swept him from the horse and he took hold of the reins, and 
was drowned with the animal. The Indians of that chief (whose name was 
Dulchanchellin) discovered the horse and told us that we would find him 
lower down the stream. So they went after the man, and his death caused us 
much grief, since until then we had not lost anybody. The horse made a 
supper for many on that night. Beyond there, and on the following day, we 
reached the chief's village, whither he sent us corn.

That same night, as they went for water, an arrow was shot at one of the 
Christians, but God willed that he was not hurt. The day after we left 
this place, without any of the natives having appeared, because all had 
fled, but further on some Indians were seen who showed signs of hostility, 
and although we called them they would neither come back nor wait, but 
withdrew and followed in our rear. The Governor placed a few horsemen in 
ambush near the trail, who as they (the Indians) passed, surprised them 
and took three or four Indians, whom we kept as guides thereafter. These 
led us into a country difficult to traverse and strange to look at, for it 
had very great forests, the trees being wonderfully tall and so many of 
them fallen that they obstructed our way so that we had to make long 
detours and with great trouble. Of the trees standing many were rent from 
top to bottom by thunderbolts, which strike very often in that country, 
where storms and tempests are always frequent.

With such efforts we travelled until the day after St. John's Day, when we 
came in sight of Apalachen, without having been noticed by the Indians of 
the land. We gave many thanks to God for being so near it, believing what 
we had been told about the country to be true, and that now our sufferings 
would come to an end after the long and weary march over bad trails. We 
had also suffered greatly from hunger, for, although we found corn 
occasionally, most of the time we marched seven or eight leagues without 
any. And many there were among us who besides suffering great fatigue and 
hunger, had their backs covered with wounds from the weight of the armor 
and other things they had to carry as occasion required. But to find 
ourselves at last where we wished to be and where we had been assured so 
much food and gold would be had, made us forget a great deal of our 
hardships and weariness.

Once in sight of Apalachen, the Governor commanded me to enter the village 
with nine horsemen and fifty foot. So the inspector and I undertook this. 
Upon penetrating into the village we found only women and boys. The men 
were not there at the time, but soon, while we were walking about, they 
came and began to fight, shooting arrows at us. They killed the 
inspector's horse, but finally fled and left us. We found there plenty of 
ripe maize ready to be gathered and much dry corn already housed. We also 
found many deer skins and among them mantles made of thread and of poor 
quality, with which the women cover parts of their bodies. They had many 
vessels for grinding maize. The village contained forty small and low 
houses, reared in sheltered places, out of fear of the great storms that 
continuously occur in the country. The buildings are of straw, and they 
are surrounded by dense timber, tall trees and numerous water-pools, where 
there were so many fallen trees and of such size as to greatly obstruct 
and impede circulation.

The country between our landing place and the village and country of 
Apalachen is mostly level; the soil is sand and earth. All throughout it 
there are very large trees and open forests containing nut trees, laurels 
and others of the kind called resinous, cedar, juniper, wateroak, pines, 
oak and low palmetto, like those of Castilla. Everywhere there are many 
lagoons, large and small, some very difficult to cross, partly because 
they are so deep, partly because they are covered with fallen trees. Their 
bottom is sandy, and in the province of Apalachen the lagoons are much 
larger than those we found previously. There is much maize in this 
province and the houses are scattered all over the country as much as 
those of the Gelves. The animals we saw there were three kinds of deer, 
rabbits and hares, bears and lions and other wild beasts, among them one 
that carries its young in a pouch on its belly as long as the young are 
small, until they are able to look for their sustenance, and even then, 
when they are out after food and people come, the mother does not move 
until her little ones are in the pouch again. The country is very cold; it 
has good pasture for cattle; there are birds of many kinds in large 
numbers: geese, ducks, wild ducks, muscovy ducks, Ibis, small white herons 
(Egrets), herons and partridges. We saw many falcons, marsh-hawks, sparrow-
hawks, pigeon-hawks and many other birds. Two hours after we arrived at 
Apalachen the Indians that had fled came back peaceably, begging us to 
give back to them their women and children, which we did. The Governor, 
however, kept with him one of their caciques, at which they became so 
angry as to attack us the following day. They did it so swiftly and with 
so much audacity as to set fire to the lodges we occupied, but when we 
sallied forth they fled to the lagoons nearby, on account of which and of 
the big corn patches, we could not do them any harm beyond killing one 
Indian. The day after, Indians from a village on the other side came and 
attacked us in the same manner, escaping in the same way, with the loss of 
a single man.

We remained at this village for twenty-five days, making three excursions 
during the time. We found the country very thinly inhabited and difficult 
to march through, owing to bad places, timber and lagoons. We inquired of 
the cacique whom we had retained and of the other Indians with us (who 
were neighbors and enemies of them) about the condition and settlements of 
the land, the quality of its people, about supplies and everything else. 
They answered, each one for himself, that Apalachen was the largest town 
of all; that further in less people were met with, who were very much 
poorer than those here, and that the country was thinly settled, the 
inhabitants greatly scattered, and also that further inland big lakes, 
dense forests, great deserts and wastes were met with.

Then we asked about the land to the south, its villages and resources. 
They said that in that direction and nine days' march towards the sea was 
a village called Aute, where the Indians had plenty of corn and also beans 
and melons, and that, being so near the sea, they obtained fish, and that 
those were their friends. Seeing how poor the country was, taking into 
account the unfavorable reports about its population and everything else, 
and that the Indians made constant war upon us, wounding men and horses 
whenever they went for water (which they could do from the lagoons where 
we could not reach them) by shooting arrows at us; that they had killed a 
chief of Tezcuco called Don Pedro, whom the commissary had taken along 
with him, we agreed to depart and go in search of the sea, and of the 
village of Aute, which they had mentioned. And so we left, arriving there 
five days after. The first day we travelled across lagoons and trails 
without seeing a single Indian.

On the second day, however, we reached a lake very difficult to cross, the 
water reaching to the chest, and there were a great many fallen trees. 
Once in the middle of it, a number of Indians assailed us from behind 
trees that concealed them from our sight, while others were on fallen 
trees, and they began to shower arrows upon us, so that many men and 
horses were wounded, and before we could get out of the lagoon our guide 
was captured by them. After we had got out, they pressed us very hard, 
intending to cut us off, and it was useless to turn upon them, for they 
would hide in the lake and from there wound both men and horses.

So the Governor ordered the horsemen to dismount and attack them on foot. 
The pursuer dismounted also, and our people attacked them. Again they fled 
to a lagoon, and we succeeded in holding the trail. In this fight some of 
our people were wounded, in spite of their good armor. There were men that 
day who swore they had seen two oak trees, each as thick as the calf of a 
leg, shot through and through by arrows, which is not surprising if we 
consider the force and dexterity with which they shoot. I myself saw an 
arrow that had penetrated the base of a poplar tree for half a foot in 
length. All the many Indians from Florida we saw were archers, and, being 
very tall and naked, at a distance they appear giants.

Those people are wonderfully built, very gaunt and of great strength and 
agility. Their bows are as thick as an arm, from eleven to twelve spans 
long, shooting an arrow at 200 paces with unerring aim. From that crossing 
we went to another similar one, a league away, but while it was half a 
league in length it was also much more difficult. There we crossed without 
opposition, for the Indians, having spent all their arrows at the first 
place, had nothing wherewith they would dare attack us. The next day, 
while crossing a similar place, I saw the tracks of people who went ahead 
of us, and I notified the Governor, who was in the rear, so that, although 
the Indians turned upon us, as we were on our guard, they could do us no 
harm. Once on open ground they pursued us still. We attacked them twice, 
killing two, while they wounded me and two or three other Christians, and 
entered the forest again, where we could no longer injure them.

In this manner we marched for eight days, without meeting any more 
natives, until one league from the site to which I said we were going. 
There, as we were marching along, Indians crept up unseen and fell upon 
our rear. A boy belonging to a nobleman, called Avellaneda, who was in the 
rear guard, gave the alarm. Avellaneda turned back to assist, and the 
Indians hit him with an arrow on the edge of the cuirass, piercing his 
neck nearly through and through, so that he died on the spot, and we 
carried him to Aute. It took us nine days from Apalachen to the place 
where we stopped. And then we found that all the people had left and the 
lodges were burnt. But there was plenty of maize, squash and beans, all 
nearly ripe and ready for harvest. We rested there for two days.

After this the Governor entreated me to go in search of the sea, as the 
Indians said it was so near by, and we had, on this march, already 
suspected its proximity from a great river to which we had given the name 
of the Rio de la Magdalena. I left on the following day in search of it, 
accompanied by the commissary, the captain Castillo, Andres Dorantes, 
seven horsemen and fifty foot. We marched until sunset, reaching an inlet 
or arm of the sea, where we found plenty of oysters on which the people 
feasted, and we gave many thanks to God for bringing us there.

The next day I sent twenty men to reconnoiter the coast and explore it, 
who returned on the day following at nightfall, saying that these inlets 
and bays were very large and went so far inland as greatly to impede our 
investigations, and that the coast was still at a great distance. Hearing 
this and considering how ill-prepared we were for the task, I returned to 
where the Governor was. We found him sick, together with many others. The 
night before, Indians had made an attack, putting them in great stress, 
owing to their enfeebled condition. The Indians had also killed one of 
their horses. I reported upon my journey and on the bad condition of the 
country. That day we remained there.

On the next day we left Aute and marched (all day) to the spot I had 
visited on my last exploration. Our march was extremely difficult, for 
neither had we horses enough to carry the sick, nor did we know how to 
relieve them. They became worse every day, and our sufferings were 
afflicting. There it became manifest how few resources we had for going 
further, and even in case we had been provided we did not know where to 
go; our men were mostly sick and too much out of condition to be of any 
use whatever. I refrain from making a long story of it. Any one can 
imagine what might be experienced in a land so strange and so utterly 
without resources of any kind, either for stay or for an escape. 
Nevertheless, since the surest aid was God, Our Lord, and since we never 
doubted of it, something happened that put us in a worse plight yet.

Most of the horsemen began to leave in secret, hoping thus to save 
themselves, forsaking the Governor and the sick, who were helpless. Still, 
as among them were many of good families and of rank, they would not 
suffer this to happen unbeknown to the Governor and Your Majesty's 
officials, so that, when we remonstrated, showing at what an unseasonable 
time they were leaving their captain and the sick and, above all, 
forsaking Your Majesty's service, they concluded to stay, and share the 
fate of all, without abandoning one another. The Governor thereupon called 
them to his presence all together, and each one in particular, asking 
their opinion about this dismal country, so as to be able to get out of it 
and seek relief, for in that land there was none.

One-third of our people were dangerously ill, getting worse hourly, and we 
felt sure of meeting the same fate, with death as our only prospect, which 
in such a country was much worse yet. And considering these and many other 
inconveniences and that we had tried many expedients, we finally resorted 
to a very difficult one, which was to build some craft in which to leave 
the land. It seemed impossible, as none of us knew how to construct ships. 
We had no tools, no iron, no smithery, no oakum, no pitch, no tackling; 
finally, nothing of what was indispensable. Neither was there anybody to 
instruct us in shipbuilding, and, above all, there was nothing to eat, 
while the work was going on, for those who would have to perform the task. 
Considering all this, we agreed to think it over. Our parley ceased for 
that day, and everyone went off, leaving it to God, Our Lord, to put him 
on the right road according to His pleasure.

The next day God provided that one of the men should come, saying that he 
would make wooden flues, and bellows of deerskin, and as we were in such a 
state that anything appearing like relief seemed acceptable, we told him 
to go to work, and agreed to make of our stirrups, spurs, cross-bows and 
other iron implements the nails, saws and hatchets and other tools we so 
greatly needed for our purpose.

In order to obtain food while the work proposed was in progress we 
determined upon four successive raids into Aute, with all the horses and 
men that were fit for service, and that on every third day a horse should 
be killed and the meat distributed among those who worked at the barges 
and among the sick. The raids were executed with such people and horses as 
were able, and they brought as many as four hundred fanegas of maize, 
although not without armed opposition from the Indians. We gathered plenty 
of palmettos, using their fibre and husk, twisting and preparing it in 
place of oakum for the barges. The work on these was done by the only 
carpenter we had, and progressed so rapidly that, beginning on the fourth 
day of August, on the twentieth day of the month of September, five barges 
of twenty-two elbow lengths each were ready, caulked with palmetto oakum 
and tarred with pitch, which a Greek called Don Teodoro made from certain 
pines. Of the husk of palmettos, and of the tails and manes of the horses 
we made ropes and tackles, of our shirts sails, and of the junipers that 
grew there we made the oars, which we thought were necessary, and such was 
the stress in which our sins had placed us that only with very great 
trouble could we find stones for ballast and anchors of the barges, for we 
had not seen a stone in the whole country. We flayed the legs of the 
horses and tanned the skin to make leather pouches for carrying water.

During that time some of the party went to the coves and inlets for sea-
food, and the Indians surprised them twice, killing ten of our men in 
plain view of the camp, without our being able to prevent it. We found 
them shot through and through with arrows, for, although several wore good 
armor, it was not sufficient to protect them, since, as I said before, 
they shot their arrows with such force and precision. According to the 
sworn statements of our pilots, we had travelled from the bay, to which we 
gave the name of the Cross, to this place, two hundred and eighty leagues, 
more or less.

In all these parts we saw no mountains nor heard of any, and before 
embarking we had lost over forty men through sickness and hunger, besides 
those killed by Indians. On the twenty-second day of the month of 
September we had eaten up all the horses but one. We embarked in the 
following order: In the barge of the Governor there were forty-nine men, 
and as many in the one entrusted to the purser and the commissary. The 
third barge he placed in charge of Captain Alonso del Castillo and of 
Andres Dorantes, with forty-eight men; in another he placed two captains, 
named Tellez and Penalosa, with forty-seven men. The last one he gave to 
the inspector and to me, with forty-nine men, and, after clothing and 
supplies were put on board, the sides of the barges only rose half a foot 
above the water. Besides, we were so crowded as to be unable to stir. So 
great is the power of need that it brought us to venture out into such a 
troublesome sea in this manner, and without any one among us having the 
least knowledge of the art of navigation.

That bay from which we started is called the Bay of the Horses. We sailed 
seven days among those inlets, in the water waist deep, without signs of 
anything like the coast. At the end of this time we reached an island near 
the shore. My barge went ahead, and from it we saw five Indian canoes 
coming. The Indians abandoned them and left them in our hands, when they 
saw that we approached. The other barges went on and saw some lodges on 
the same island, where we found plenty of ruffs and their eggs, dried, and 
that was a very great relief in our needy condition. Having taken them, we 
went further, and two leagues beyond found a strait between the island and 
the coast, which strait we christened Sant Miguel, it being the day of 
that saint. Issuing from it we reached the coast, where by means of the 
five canoes I had taken from the Indians we mended somewhat the barges, 
making washboards and adding to them and raising the sides two hands above 
water.

Then we set out to sea again, coasting towards the River of Palms. Every 
day our thirst and hunger increased because our supplies were giving out, 
as well as the water supply, for the pouches we had made from the legs of 
our horses soon became rotten and useless. From time to time we would 
enter some inlet or cove that reached very far inland, but we found them 
all shallow and dangerous, and so we navigated through them for thirty 
days, meeting sometimes Indians who fished and were poor and wretched 
people.

At the end of these thirty days, and when we were in extreme need of water 
and hugging the coast, we heard one night a canoe approaching. When we saw 
it we stopped and waited, but it would not come to us, and, although we 
called out, it would neither turn back nor wait. It being night, we did 
not follow the canoe, but proceeded. At dawn we saw a small island, where 
we touched to search for water, but in vain, as there was none. While at 
anchor a great storm overtook us. We remained there six days without 
venturing to leave, and it being five days since we had drank anything our 
thirst was so great as to compel us to drink salt water, and several of us 
took such an excess of it that we lost suddenly five men.

I tell this briefly, not thinking it necessary to relate in particular all 
the distress and hardships we bore. Moreover, if one takes into account 
the place we were in and the slight chances of relief he may imagine what 
we suffered. Seeing that our thirst was increasing and the water was 
killing us, while the storm did not abate, we agreed to trust to God, Our 
Lord, and rather risk the perils of the sea than wait there for certain 
death from thirst. So we left in the direction we had seen the canoe going 
on the night we came here. During this day we found ourselves often on the 
verge of drowning and so forlorn that there was none in our company who 
did not expect to die at any moment.

It was Our Lord's pleasure, who many a time shows His favor in the hour of 
greatest distress, that at sunset we turned a point of land and found 
there shelter and much improvement. Many canoes came and the Indians in 
them spoke to us, but turned back without waiting. They were tall and well 
built, and carried neither bows nor arrows. We followed them to their 
lodges, which were nearly along the inlet, and landed, and in front of the 
lodges we saw many jars with water, and great quantities of cooked fish. 
The Chief of that land offered all to the Governor and led him to his 
abode. The dwellings were of matting and seemed to be permanent. When we 
entered the home of the chief he gave us plenty of fish, while we gave him 
of our maize, which they ate in our presence, asking for more. So we gave 
more to them, and the Governor presented him with some trinkets. While 
with the cacique at his lodge, half an hour after sunset, the Indians 
suddenly fell upon us and upon our sick people on the beach.

They also attacked the house of the cacique, where the Governor was, 
wounding him in the face with a stone. Those who were with him seized the 
cacique, but as his people were so near he escaped, leaving in our hands a 
robe of marten-ermine skin, which, I believe, are the finest in the world 
and give out an odor like amber and musk. A single one can be smelt so far 
off that it seems as if there were a great many. We saw more of that kind, 
but none like these.

Those of us who were there, seeing the Governor hurt, placed him aboard 
the barge and provided that most of the men should follow him to the 
boats. Some fifty of us remained on land to face the Indians, who attacked 
thrice that night, and so furiously as to drive us back every time further 
than a stone's throw.

Not one of us escaped unhurt. I was wounded in the face, and if they had 
had more arrows (for only a few were found) without any doubt they would 
have done us great harm. At the last onset the Captains Dorantes, Penalosa 
and Tellez, with fifteen men, placed themselves in ambush and attacked 
them from the rear, causing them to flee and leave us. The next morning I 
destroyed more than thirty of their canoes, which served to protect us 
against a northern wind then blowing, on account of which we had to stay 
there, in the severe cold, not venturing out to sea on account of the 
heavy storm. After this we again embarked and navigated for three days, 
having taken along but a small supply of water, the vessels we had for it 
being few. So we found ourselves in the same plight as before. 

Continuing onward, we entered a firth and there saw a canoe with Indians 
approaching. As we hailed them they came, and the Governor, whose barge 
they neared first, asked them for water. They offered to get some, 
provided we gave them something in which to carry it, and a Christian 
Greek, called Doroteo Teodoro (who has already been mentioned), said he 
would go with them. The Governor and others vainly tried to dissuade him, 
but he insisted upon going and went, taking along a negro, while the 
Indians left two of their number as hostages. At night the Indians 
returned and brought back our vessels, but without water; neither did the 
Christians return with them. Those that had remained as hostages, when 
their people spoke to them, attempted to throw themselves into the water. 
But our men in the barge held them back, and so the other Indians forsook 
their canoe, leaving us very despondent and sad for the loss of those two 
Christians.

In the morning many canoes of Indians came, demanding their two 
companions, who had remained in the barge as hostages. The Governor 
answered that he would give them up, provided they returned the two 
Christians. With those people there came five or six chiefs, who seemed to 
us to be of better appearance, greater authority and manner of composure 
than any we had yet seen, although not as tall as those of whom we have 
before spoken. They wore the hair loose and very long, and were clothed in 
robes of marten, of the kind we had obtained previously, some of them done 
up in a very strange fashion, because they showed patterns of fawn-colored 
furs that looked very well.

They entreated us to go with them, and said that they would give us the 
Christians, water and many other things, and more canoes kept coming 
towards us, trying to block the mouth of that inlet, and for this reason, 
as well as because the land appeared very dangerous to remain in, we took 
again to sea, where we stayed with them till noon. And as they would not 
return the Christians, and for that reason neither would we give up the 
Indians, they began to throw stones at us with slings, and darts, 
threatening to shoot arrows, although we did not see more than three or 
four bows.

While thus engaged the wind freshened and they turned about and left us. 
We navigated that day until nightfall, when my bark, which was the 
foremost, discovered a promontory made by the coast. At the other end was 
a very large river, and at a small island on the point I anchored to wait 
for the other barges.

The Governor did not want to touch, but entered a bay close by, where 
there were many small islands. There we got together and took fresh water 
out of the sea, because the river emptied into it like a torrent.

For two days we had eaten the corn raw, and now, in order to toast it, we 
went ashore on that island, but not finding any firewood, agreed to go to 
the river, which was one league from there behind the point. However, the 
current was so strong that it in no way allowed us to land, but rather 
carried us away from the shore against all our efforts. The north wind 
that blew off shore freshened so much that it drove us back to the high 
sea, without our being able to do anything against it, and at about one-
half league from shore we sounded and found no bottom even at thirty 
fathoms. Without being able to understand it, it was the current that 
disturbed our soundings. We navigated two days yet, trying hard to reach 
the shore. On the third day, a little before sunrise, we saw many columns 
of smoke rising on the coast. Working towards these, we found ourselves in 
three fathoms of water, but it being night did not dare to land because, 
as we had seen so much smoke, we believed that greater danger might be in 
wait for us there. We were unable to see, owing to the darkness, what we 
should do. So we determined to wait until morning.

When it dawned the barges had been driven apart from each other. I found 
myself in thirty fathoms and, drifting along at the hour of vespers, I 
descried two barges, and as I approached saw that the first one was that 
of the Governor, who asked me what I thought we should do. I told him that 
we ought to rejoin the other barge, which was ahead of us, and in no 
manner forsake her, and the three together should continue our way whither 
God might take us. He replied it was impossible, since the barge was 
drifting far away into the sea, whereas he wanted to land, but that if I 
wished to follow I should put the people of my barge at the oars and work 
hard, as only by the strength of our arms the land could be reached. In 
this he had been advised by a captain he had along, whose name was 
Pantoja, who told him that if he did not land that day he would not in six 
days more, during which time we would of necessity starve.

Seeing his determination, I took to my own oar and the other oarsmen in my 
craft did the same, and thus we rowed until nearly sunset. But as the 
Governor had with him the healthiest and strongest men, in no way could we 
follow or keep up with him. Seeing this, I asked him to give me a rope 
from his barge to be able to follow, but he answered that it was no small 
effort on their part alone to reach the shore on that night. I told him 
that since it was barely possible for us to follow and do what he had 
ordained, he should tell me what he commanded me to do. He answered that 
this was no time for orders; that each one should do the best he could to 
save himself; that he intended to do it that way, and with this he went on 
with his craft.

As I could not follow him, I went after the other barge, which was out at 
sea and waited for me, and reaching it I found it was the one of the 
Captains Penalosa and Tellez. We travelled together for four days, our 
daily ration being half a handful of raw maize. At the end of these four 
days a storm overtook us, in which the other barge was lost. God's great 
mercy preserved us from being drowned in that weather.

It being winter and the cold very great, and as we had been suffering so 
many days from hunger and from the injuries we received from the waves, 
that the next day people began to break down, so that when the sun set all 
those aboard of my barge had fallen in a heap and were so near dying that 
few remained conscious, and not five men kept on their feet.

When night came the skipper and I were the only ones able to manage the 
barge. Two hours after nightfall the skipper told me to steer the craft 
alone, since he felt that he would die that same night. Thereupon I stood 
at the helm, and after midnight went to see if the skipper was dead, but 
he said that, on the contrary, he felt better and would steer till 
daybreak. On that occasion I would have hailed death with delight rather 
than to see so many people around me in such a condition. After the 
skipper had taken the barge under his control I went to rest, very much 
without resting, for I thought of anything else but sleep.

Near daybreak I fancied to hear the sound of breakers, for as the coast 
was low, their noise was greater. Surprised at it, I called to the 
skipper, who said he thought we were near the shore. Sounding, we found 
seven fathoms, and he was of the opinion that we should keep off shore 
till dawn. So I took the oar and rowed along the coast, from which we were 
one league away, and turned the stern to seaward.

Close to shore a wave took us and hurled the barge a horse's length out of 
water. With the violent shock nearly all the people who lay in the boat 
like dead came to themselves, and, seeing we were close to land, began to 
crawl out on all fours. As they took to some rocks, we built a fire and 
toasted some of our maize. We found rain water, and with the warmth of the 
fire people revived and began to cheer up. The day we arrived there was 
the sixth of the month of November.

After the people had eaten I sent Lope de Oviedo, who was the strongest 
and heartiest of all, to go to some trees nearby and climb to the top of 
one, examine the surroundings and the country in which we were. He did so 
and found we were on an island, and that the ground was hollowed out, as 
if cattle had gone over it, from which it seemed to him that the land 
belonged to Christians, and so he told us. I sent him again to look and 
examine more closely if there were any worn trails, and not to go too far 
so as not to run into danger. He went, found a footpath, followed it for 
about one-half league, and saw several Indian huts which stood empty 
because the Indians had gone out into the field.

He took away a cooking pot, a little dag and a few ruffs and turned back, 
but as he seemed to delay I sent two other Christians to look for him and 
find out what had happened. 

They met him nearby and saw that three Indians, with bows and arrows, were 
following and calling to him, while he did the same to them by signs. So 
he came to where we were, the Indians remaining behind, seated on the 
beach. Half an hour after a hundred Indian archers joined them, and our 
fright was such that, whether tall or little, it made them appear giants 
to us. They stood still close to the first ones, near where we were.

We could not defend ourselves, as there were scarcely three of us who 
could stand on their feet. The inspector and I stepped forward and called 
them. They came, and we tried to quiet them the best we could and save 
ourselves, giving them beads and bells. Each one of them gave me an arrow 
in token of friendship, and by signs they gave us to understand that on 
the following morning they would come back with food, as then they had 
none.

The next day, at sunrise, which was the hour the Indians had given us to 
understand, they came as promised and brought us plenty of fish and some 
roots which they eat that taste like nuts, some bigger, some smaller, most 
of which are taken out of the water with much trouble.

In the evening they returned and brought us more fish and some of the same 
roots, and they brought their women and children to look at us. They 
thought themselves very rich with the little bells and beads we gave them, 
and thereafter visited us daily with the same things as before. As we saw 
ourselves provided with fish, roots, water and the other things we had 
asked for, we concluded to embark again and continue our voyage.

We lifted the barge out of the sand into which it had sunk ( for which 
purpose we all had to take off our clothes) and had great work to set her 
afloat, as our condition was such that much lighter things would have 
given us trouble.

Then we embarked. Two crossbow shots from shore a wave swept over us, we 
all got wet, and being naked and the cold very great, the oars dropped out 
of our hands. The next wave overturned the barge. The inspector and two 
others clung to her to save themselves, but the contrary happened; they 
got underneath the barge and were drowned.

The shore being very rough, the sea took the others and thrust them, half 
dead, on the beach of the same island again, less the three that had 
perished underneath the barge.

The rest of us, as naked as we had been born, had lost everything, and 
while it was not worth much, to us it meant a great deal. It was in 
November, bitterly cold, and we in such a state that every bone could 
easily be counted, and we looked like death itself. Of myself I can say 
that since the month of May I had not tasted anything but toasted maize, 
and even sometimes had been obliged to eat it raw. Although the horses 
were killed during the time the barges were built, I never could eat of 
them, and not ten times did I taste fish. This I say in order to explain 
and that any one might guess how we were off. On top of all this, a north 
wind arose, so that we were nearer death than life. It pleased Our Lord 
that, searching for the remnants of our former fire, we found wood with 
which we built big fires and then with many tears begged Our Lord for 
mercy and forgiveness of our sins. Every one of us pitied not only 
himself, but all the others whom he saw in the same condition.

At sunset the Indians, thinking we had not left, came to bring us food, 
but when they saw us in such a different attire from before and so strange-
looking, they were so frightened as to turn back. I went to call them, and 
in great fear they came. I then gave them to understand by signs how we 
had lost a barge and three of our men had been drowned, while before them 
there lay two of our men dead, with the others about to go the same way.

Upon seeing the disaster we had suffered, our misery and distress, the 
Indians sat down with us and all began to weep out of compassion for our 
misfortune, and for more than half an hour they wept so loud and so 
sincerely that it could be heard far away. 

Verily, to see beings so devoid of reason, untutored, so like unto brutes, 
yet so deeply moved by pity for us, it increased my feelings and those of 
others in my company for our own misfortune. When the lament was over, I 
spoke to the Christians and asked them if they would like me to beg the 
Indians to take us to their homes. Some of the men, who had been to New 
Spain, answered that it would be unwise, as, once at their abode, they 
might sacrifice us to their idols.

Still, seeing there was no remedy and that in any other way death was 
surer and nearer, I did not mind what they said, but begged the Indians to 
take us to their dwellings, at which they showed great pleasure, telling 
us to tarry yet a little, but that they would do what we wished. Soon 
thirty of them loaded themselves with firewood and went to their lodges, 
which were far away, while we stayed with the others until it was almost 
dark. Then they took hold of us and carried us along hurriedly to where 
they lived.

Against the cold, and lest on the way some one of us might faint or die, 
they had provided four or five big fires on the road, at each one of which 
they warmed us. As soon as they saw we had regained a little warmth and 
strength they would carry us to the next fire with such haste that our 
feet barely touched the ground. 

So we got to their dwellings, where we saw they had built a hut for us 
with many fires in it. About one hour after our arrival began to dance and 
to make a great celebration (which lasted the whole night), although there 
was neither pleasure, feast nor sleep in it for us, since we expected to 
be sacrificed. In the morning they again gave us fish and roots, and 
treated us so well that we became reassured, losing somewhat our 
apprehension of being butchered.

That same day I saw on one of the Indians a trinket he had not gotten from 
us, and asking from where they had obtained it they answered, by signs, 
that other men like ourselves and who were still in our rear, had given it 
to them. Hearing this, I sent two Christians with two Indians to guide 
them to those people. Very near by they met them, and they also were 
looking for us, as the Indians had told them of our presence in the 
neighborhood. These were the Captains Andres Dorantes and Alonso del 
Castillo, with all of their crew. When they came near us they were much 
frightened at our appearance and grieved at being unable to give us 
anything, since they had nothing but their clothes. And they stayed with 
us there, telling how, on the fifth of that same month, their barge 
stranded a league and a half from there, and they escaped without anything 
being lost.

All together, we agreed upon repairing their barge, and that those who had 
strength and inclination should proceed in it, while the others should 
remain until completely restored and then go as best they could along the 
coast, following it till God would be pleased to get us all together to a 
land of Christians.

So we set to work, but ere the barge was afloat Tavera, a gentleman in our 
company, died, while the barge proved not to be seaworthy and soon sank. 
Now, being in the condition which I have stated &emdash; that is, most of 
us naked and the weather so unfavorable for walking and for swimming 
across rivers and coves, and we had neither food nor any way to carry it, 
we determined upon submitting to necessity and upon wintering there, and 
we also agreed that four men, who were the most able-bodied, should go to 
Panuco, which we believed to be nearby, and that, if it was God, Our 
Lord's will to take them there, they should tell of our remaining on the 
island and of our distress. One of them was a Portuguese, called Alvaro 
Fernandez, a carpenter and sailor; the second was Mendez; the third, 
Figueroa, a native of Toledo; the fourth, Astudillo, from Zafra. They were 
all good swimmers and took with them an Indian from the island.

A few days after these four Christians had left, the weather became so 
cold and tempestuous that the Indians could no longer pull roots, and the 
canebrake in which they used to fish yielded nothing more. As the lodges 
afforded so little shelter, people began to die, and five Christians, 
quartered on the coast, were driven to such an extremity that they ate 
each other up until but one remained, who being left alone, there was 
nobody to eat him. Their names are: Sierra, Diego, Lopez, Corral, Palacios 
and Gonzalo Ruiz. At this the Indians were so startled, and there was such 
an uproar among them, that I verily believe if they had seen this at the 
beginning they would have killed them, and we all would have been in great 
danger. After a very short time, out of eighty men who had come there in 
our two parties only fifteen remained alive.